“A declining and aging population, limited long-term employment opportunities, and a lack of local government investment all pose critical challenges to the economic resilience and future of the Eastern Sierra. The region faces a variety of challenges that constrain growth, including geographic remoteness and isolation—especially in the winter months— which makes routine shopping trips and health care appointments more difficult and costly. Residents of the region are more likely than those living in urban areas to heavily rely on a single industry or employer, which leaves workers vulnerable should the employer leave town, lose funding, or suffer the impact of a catastrophic climate event (such as wildfire, drought, etc.). Insufficient infrastructure, like inaccessible roads, faulty water systems, and limited or no access to broadband, also limits growth in countless ways.

Our regional definition of disinvested communities includes factors that account for income disparity, systemic racism, racial inequalities, climate change vulnerability, systemically oppressed or excluded groups (e.g., elderly populations and disabled populations), and rurality impacts (e.g., geographical isolation and lack of dedicated services). This definition accounts for feedback collected virtually and in person from the Eastern Sierra Governing Council and the 2023 Equity, Climate, and Labor HRTC Subcommittee. “

-Excerpt from the Sierra Jobs First Regional Summary, published Dec. 2023: